Chainmaking apparatus



y 1953 R. L. cooKE 2,637,159

- CHAINMAKING APPARATUS Filed Jan. 27, 1950 2 SHEETS-SHEET 2 46 IN VENTOR.

ATTORNE s.

Patented May 5, 1953 2,637,159 I CHAINMAKING APPARATUS Robert L. Cooke,Attleboro, Mass., assignor to Charles D. J. Smith, Attleboro, Mass.

Application January 27, 1950, Serial No. 140,829

4 Claims.

This invention relates to a chain making apparatus of the type wherein asolid bar of stock is rolled to provide a chain.

Heretofore, in an apparatus of the above general type, difliculty hasbeen experienced in keeping the edges of the rolls which engage thestock from contacting one another and becoming broken. Also, difficulty.has been provided in the separation of the links by cutting through thestock and severing it. Also, it has been experienced that due to theterrific pressures developed in. the machine, that only very soft stockcould be handled.

One of the objects of this invention is to provide a machine having twopairs of opposed rolls which will beso arranged that the rolls whilebeing maintained against the terrific pressures developed will not bepermitted to contact each other so as to destroy the cutting edges orfaces of the rolls.

Another object of this invention is to provide fins or cutters whichwill completely sever the stock into the individual links to be providedas the stock passes through the rolls.

With these and other objects in view, the invention consists of certainnovel features of construction, as will be more fully described and.particularly pointed out in the appended claims.

In the accompanying drawings:

Figure 1 is a top plan view of the machine which is constructed inaccordance with this invention;

Figure 2 is a side elevation of the apparatus;

Figure 3 is a fr-agmental view on a much larger scale showing inelevation one of the rolls;

Figure 4 is a top or edge view of the structure shown in Figure 3;

Figure 5 is a sectional view taken substantially upon the axes of thefour rolls and showing the fragmental portion of each of the rolls inits mitered relation with a piece of stock in operating position;

Figure 6 is a plan view of a piece of work produced;

Figure '7 is a plan view of a. modified piece of work.

In proceeding with this invention, I provide two opposite pairs of rollsarranged at right angles to each other with their axes in substantiallythe same plane. Bevelled gears are provided to cause the rolls to rotatein unison, one of the rolls being driven by a suitable shaft. The rollsare provided with depressions on their circumferential surfaces whichfollow the exterior form of the chain to be produced, there being finsto divide the links as a solid bar of stock is rolled between til them.Each of these rolls is provided with a mitered circumference so that thegroup may be meshed together and in order that the rolls of one pairwill not contact, shoulders are provided on each pair of rollsto engagean annular face of the other pair of rolls. Thus, each pair of rolls,serves as a stop to prevent the other pair of rolls from engaging, andin this way although terrific pressures are encountered and resisted,therolls never can engage so as to destroy their working circumferentialsurfaces.

With reference to the drawings, I0 designates generally a framev havinga bed plate ll upon which is rotatably supported in suitable bearings 12and !3 a pair of rolls [4, I5, the roll l4 being mounted upona shaft 16and the roll [5 being mounted upon a shaft H, which latter extends outfrom the frame to act as a drive shaft for the machine. Bearings I8 andit serve to mount shafts 2t and 2| upon which there are rolls 22 and 23as another pair of opposed rolls located at right angles to the rolls I4and I5. Bevel gears 24 and 25 secured to the roll l5 serve to drivebevel gears 26 and 21 secured to the rolls 22 and 23, while bevel gears28 and 29 on the opposite sides of these rolls mesh with the bevel gears30 and3l on the roll l4 and drive this roll so that as the shaft llrotates, all of the rolls rotate in unison with a balanced drive.

The rolls as shown in greater detail at their meshing portions in Figure5 have mitered portions 30 and 3| in opposed relation on the rolls l4and I5, and 32 and 33 in opposed relation on the rolls 22 and 23. Thecircumferential beveled edges of each of the rolls is substantiallyidentical and comprises depressions 34 (Figs. 3 and 4) which follow theexterior form of the chain to be produced, while between thesedepressions 34 there are fins 35 which serve as cutters to cut through abar of stock as it passes between the rolls. These fins 35 have theirfaces in substantially the beveled surface 36 of the roll, whileadjacent this fin the stock is cut away as at 31 and yet is not of thedepth of the depression 34 which forms the exterior surface of thechain. The fin 35 on the opposite beveled surface may be seen as at 35'in Figure 3 with its cooperating cutaway portion 31' at either sidethereof. We thus have a duplicate of the depressions and fins on each ofthe mitered or beveled surfaces of each of the rolls, the arrangementbeing such that the depressions 34 on one face are staggered withreference to the depressions 34 on the opposite face, as can well beseen in Figure 4.

The formation of the depressions and fins,

as can readily be seen, presents a very delicate and sharp edgedarrangement and one which could readily be injured, should opposed pairsof rolls come in contact.

In order to prevent the rolls from moving to ward each other intocontact, the rolls l4 and I5 are provided with shoulders 40 so as toengage the annular face 4| of the washers 42 on either side of the rolls22 and 23. Also, shoulders 43 are provided by the washers 32 so as toengage the annular faces 44 of the rolls l4 and 15.

By providing four rolls with their mitered surfaces in close adjacency,a bar of stock usually in the form of a cross in cross section may befed between these rolls and will emerge in link form. The links will beof an ornamental shape depending upon th depressions and theability oithe fins to cut between the links or in some cases to sever the stockfrom the links sufficiently .close to the depressions which have beenformed so that the link formation may be had.

The chain shown in Figure 6 is severedjas at 45 leaving links ofgenerally rectangular form. The shape of a wire chain 56 is providedwith webs 41 extending therefrom, In some cases a modification may beprovided by forming the edges of the recesses 35 into cutting fins andproducing a chain of the wire form as shown at 48 in Figure 7.

I claim:

1. In a chain making apparatus, two pairs of opposed symmetricallylocated rolls arranged at right angles to each other with their edges,mitered at equal angles to fit together, said rolls being provided withdepressions on their circum- ,ferential surfaces which follow theexterior form of the chain to be produced, and each of said opposedpairs of rolls having shoulders at right angles to the axis and each ofsaid opposed pairs having annular faces parallel to the axes presentedto the shoulders of the other set of opposed pairs of rolls to limit themovement of the axes of each pair of rolls toward each other so that thework forming edges may not interfere.

2. In a chain making apparatus as in claim 1 wherein the miters of onepair of rolls have their shoulders extending outwardly from the base ofthe miter.

3. In a chain making apparatus as in claim 1 wherein the miters of onepair of rolls have their annular faces extending inwardly toward theiraxes from the base of the miter.

4,. In a chain making apparatus as in claim 1 wherein themiters of onepair of rolls have their shoulders extending outwardly from the base ofthe miter and the other set of rolls have their annular faces to engagetherewith extending from the base of their miter.

ROBERT L, COOKIE.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS NumberName Date 523,432 Klatte July 24, 1894 954,245 Andrews Apr. 5, 19101,108,272 Strathern Aug. 25, 1914 1,431,443 Cowles Oct. 10., 19221,765,368 Frahm et a1 June 24, 1930 FOREIGN PATENTS Number Country Date296,836 Germany May 9,. 1916

